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“It is the most enormous blunder for the No campaign to place Trident at the centre of the referendum debate.

"The Parliament and 80 per cent of the people of Scotland want to get rid of Trident, and the obscene waste of up to £100 billion it represents at a time of austerity and savage welfare cuts from Westminster.

"David Cameron should be using this visit as his opportunity to apologise for Westminster's betrayal of Scotland’s communities and its constant broken promises on defence."

The Prime Minister will say the UK is 'stronger and safer together' as he visits Scotland today.

Speaking ahead of a trip to the offices of a defence contractor, David Cameron said:

“Scotland has a world renowned and highly skilled defence sector that employs over 12,600 people and has annual sales in excess of £1.8 billion.

“Being part of the UK opens doors for the Scottish defence industry around the globe. When we sell Typhoons overseas, this benefits jobs and growth for companies making components in Scotland.

“Scotland counts for more on the world stage because it is part of the United Kingdom and Scottish defence jobs are more secure as part of the United Kingdom. "Defence matters. We are stronger and safer together.”

– Prime Minister, David Cameron

Meanwhile, ahead of the visit, Scotland's Deputy First Minister has stepped up calls for David Cameron to agree to a live TV debate with Alex Salmond on Scottish Independence.

"First and foremost in such a referendum debate should be the UK Government’s brutal welfare cuts – and how David Cameron can possibly justify the Westminster system imposing iniquitous measures such as the Bedroom Tax on Scotland when over 90 per cent of Scottish MPs voted against it.

“David Cameron should use his visit to Scotland to speak for himself and agree to a head-to-head debate with Alex Salmond – if he does not, the conclusion we can take is that he is incapable of defending Westminster’s attacks on working families and some of our most vulnerable citizens to the people of Scotland.”

The former chancellor, Alistair Darling, believes that during these economically 'turbulent times' that the 'crucial argument' surrounding independence is that the UK as a whole will operate better in terms of the economy and jobs, compared to if Scotland left the union.